1. Field
Exemplary embodiments relate to an apparatus and method of acquiring images created by penetration of a radioactive ray, which may generate a light signal from an irradiated radioactive ray, and change an advancing direction of the generated light signal to condense the generated light signal in a light receiving unit, thereby improving a quality of the penetration images with respect to a target of inspection/examination.
2. Description of the Related Art
An X-ray may be a short wavelength-electromagnetic wave generated such that electron rays emitted from a cathode at a high speed are collided with a heavy metal, and the X-ray may have a fluorescent effect and an excellent light transmissivity with respect to an object. Accordingly, the invisible X-ray may be changed to a visible ray, and may be used in photographing on a photograph film. Also, the X-ray may photograph changes in a density, a thickness, and the like of a target of inspection/examination (hereinafter inspection target) using a phenomenon that a part of the X-ray introduced to the inspection target is absorbed in the inspection target resulting in attenuation of the X-ray. An excellent penetrating power of the X-ray with respect to an object has gained an interest as a main feature of the X-ray since the time of discovery of the X-ray, and applications of the penetrating power of the X-ray have been attempted in medical/industrial fields such as hair loss treatment, and the like. The X-ray has been more widely utilized since Sir W. H. Bragg and his son Sir W. L. Bragg developed an X-ray diffraction method in 1913 through their analysis of a crystal structure, and William Coolidge developed a thermionic X-ray tube (Coolidge X-ray tube) in 1913, which may increase/reduce an amount or penetrating power of the X-ray. Thereafter, with a development in experiments and laboratory equipments, the X-ray is able to detect a macroscopic internal structure of an object and a microscopic structure of atoms of a material.
By acquiring the X-ray introduced to the inspection target as images, which is one of outstanding characteristics of the X-ray, various inspections/examinations with respect to the inspection target may be conducted.
The X-ray may be utilized for medical purposes in a chest X-ray, ultrasonography, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and the like. The X-ray may also be utilized for industrial purposes in internal inspection for a circuit element, facility of equipments, a nondestructive inspection such as for water leakage detecting, and the like.
Images created by penetration of the X-ray widely used in all industries may be inferior in terms of image efficiency, as compared with efficiency of the irradiated X-ray, despite their widespread applications. For example, there is a significant disadvantage of the X-ray efficiency in that only about 30% of the irradiated X-ray may be materially used in acquiring images. Accordingly, there is a need for a technique of acquiring images created by penetration of the X-ray, in which the X-ray is effectively received to acquire the images having a relatively higher contrast even using a relatively small amount of exposure of the X-ray.